Handmade Treasures

The girls outdid themselves in the handmade treasure department this Christmas. Leah started hiding gifts in my stocking a couple weeks before the 25th and I finally had to ask her where Santa was going to put my chocolates if my stocking was full. I felt bad when she started to remove some things she had buried in there, so I clarified that I just wanted to make sure there was a little room because I love chocolate almost as much as fun gifts from my girls.

I really raked in the goods this year. My stash included stuff moms love to receive. Stuff like...

A hand-drawn picture with coded labels identifying each object

A handmade picture in which my child rebelled against teacher's instructions to draw a picture of her family. Instead she drew the nativity with the words: "Don't put your mind on the presents. Put your mind on Jesus's birth!"

A wrinkled fabric swatch decorated with hidden messages

An animal photo album consisting of a variety of animal pictures & facts printed off a children's website


A Spanish Recipe Book that includes recipes, yet again printed off the girls' favorite website

A flower that will never ever ever die despite all my efforts to kill the thing

Spaghetti's

A handmade envelope filled with "pencil comforters"

And a handmade pillow so I can rest my weary head.

I love that the girls were confident enough in their creativity and abilities to feel like they could make so many wonderful and fun gifts for their mom (even if I can't help chuckling). How lucky am I?

Jared actually received store-bought salsa from Leah, because as she put it, "You're a salsa guy, dad." Brita gave her dad the gift she took the most pride in, and rightly so:

A nine-patch she sewed and stuffed herself with some help from a school teacher.

I think I'm going to go enjoy some gifts now. Perhaps I'll browse through an "anamal foto album", choose a couple Spanish recipes to whip up later, and write some letters using my "pencil comforters" while taking in the aroma of my new flower. After all that, I'll likely be exhausted. I'm looking forward to cuddling up with some "spaghetti's" while my head softly sinks into my new pillow.